1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a semiconductor optoelectronic device (e.g., a laser diode or light emitting diode) package. The device package permits external electrical contact while maintaining a coaxial package geometry convenient for good heat sinking and light coupling to and from device(s) within the package.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Semiconductor optoelectronic devices are bodies of semiconductor material which include regions of opposite conductivity type forming a p-n junction therebetween. For some classes of devices, such as diode lasers and light emitting diodes, when an external voltage is properly applied to the p-n junction, light is generated internally through the recombination of pairs of oppositely charged carriers. For other classes of devices, such as photodetectors, when light (photons) strike the surface, electron-hole pairs are formed, generating an external voltage.
A stud mount coaxial package of the type commonly employed in commercial usage of a semiconductor optoelectronic device is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,869,702. There, one side of a light emissive semiconductor device is mounted onto a copper block which in turn is secured on one face of a steel stud having a hole therein. A hollow stem protruding from the opposite face of the stud permits passage of a wire through the hollow stem for providing the other connection for the semiconductor device. The wire is electrically insulated from the hollow stem. However, bonding of the device to the wire is generally done by "flying lead" bonding or hand soldering procedures, neither of which can easily be automated. Second, the package is limited by its geometry in the ways in which it can be mounted on, for example, a printed circuit board or in which it can be adapted to readily available connectors. Typically, at least one lead of the package must be soldered to an external connection. Such soldering, with its attendant heat, can degrade the device.